Aimee Fuhrman's Blog: A. E. Muses - Posts Tagged "audio-books"
Road Trips and Good Books
Our family of six recently returned home from a 3500 mile road trip. Broken down it equated to: two-and-a-half weeks away from home, six states and the District of Columbia, five campgrounds in a pop-up tent trailer, and over 50 hours in the car. That’s a lot of concentrated, cooped up time for three adults, two teens, and a kid! Granted, our children (one recently turned adult) have grown up road tripping. Years ago when our oldest was just a baby, my husband and I decided that we were not going to put our lives on hold while our children grew up. Don’t get me wrong. I totally understand why people choose to stay home with small children. Just a change in routine can throw a monkey wrench into things, but add sleeping in a weird environment and long hours confined in a car seat and you have the makings for World War 3! (And, yes, we’ve driven for hours with a baby or toddler screaming at the top of her/his lungs.) But despite all that, we have made many a long, cross-country road trip—and that without the benefit of movies or other technology!
“How did you do it?” you might ask. Well, eventually those squirmy, bored, grumpy kids figure out that you are not going to change your mind merely on account of them, and they resign themselves to monotonous confinement. But beyond that, I have learned a few tricks over the years, which I would like to share with you.
First—car games. Those silly games like the License Plate game, the Alphabet game, and I Spy really do occupy time and attention. Sure, they only last for so long, but hey, we’ll take all the help we can get.
Second—car bags. Whenever we travel, we allow each child to pack a small backpack with entertaining items. When my children were very small, these included toys with high visual and tactile appeal (including their favorite board books), plus a snugglie for naps. As my children got a bit older, we included coloring, picture books, small cars or dolls for lap play, and even cloth balls for throwing (provided they keep it away from the driver). Once my kids were in grade school, they could handle activity books and puzzle challenge travel games such as Rush Hour and Find It. Plus, we packed books and magazines—lots of them! I learned over the years to pack one-and-a-half times as much reading material as I thought they could finish on the trip. It’s amazing how motivated to read kids can be when there’s nothing else to do! (For struggling or younger readers, we have utilized something called Playaway. It is an audio book on a self-contained unit. Simply plug in a pair of earbuds, and violá!) Surprise gifts helped as well. I often purchased a small toy or book for each child, which I kept in my bag. Sometimes I would dole these out at moments of crisis; sometimes I would use them as bribes for positive attitudes and behavior in the car. In any case, they were sure to provide at least an hour or so of much needed sanity!
Third—read-alouds. Probably the most entertaining and successful tactic we have relied on while on vacation, has been the books we have read/listened to together. Audio books are fabulous for this! The best part is we can check them out at our local library, listen to them on the trip, and then return them without spending a dime (provided I return them on time)! The children have been entertained for hours at a time by a good audio book. Even the drivers have appreciated the diversion. Probably our favorite series to date has been the Hank the Cowdog series by John R. Erickson. These books are read by the narrator, whose range of voices rivals that of the best comedians. The stories are goofy, but the kids like them. And Erickson includes enough puns and allusions to keep the adults chuckling too. In addition to recorded books, I have spent countless hours reading aloud to the family. (Sometimes until I am hoarse.) We have read many children’s classics this way, and I would like to think my children are better for it. There is nothing sweeter than to finish reading only to have your children beg for one more chapter.
So, this summer, if a long road trip is on your itinerary, may I encourage you to put away the movies, the MP3s, the smart phones, and the gaming devices and rediscover the pleasure of books. Reading is a lifelong pleasure, and we can cultivate it in the car!
“How did you do it?” you might ask. Well, eventually those squirmy, bored, grumpy kids figure out that you are not going to change your mind merely on account of them, and they resign themselves to monotonous confinement. But beyond that, I have learned a few tricks over the years, which I would like to share with you.
First—car games. Those silly games like the License Plate game, the Alphabet game, and I Spy really do occupy time and attention. Sure, they only last for so long, but hey, we’ll take all the help we can get.
Second—car bags. Whenever we travel, we allow each child to pack a small backpack with entertaining items. When my children were very small, these included toys with high visual and tactile appeal (including their favorite board books), plus a snugglie for naps. As my children got a bit older, we included coloring, picture books, small cars or dolls for lap play, and even cloth balls for throwing (provided they keep it away from the driver). Once my kids were in grade school, they could handle activity books and puzzle challenge travel games such as Rush Hour and Find It. Plus, we packed books and magazines—lots of them! I learned over the years to pack one-and-a-half times as much reading material as I thought they could finish on the trip. It’s amazing how motivated to read kids can be when there’s nothing else to do! (For struggling or younger readers, we have utilized something called Playaway. It is an audio book on a self-contained unit. Simply plug in a pair of earbuds, and violá!) Surprise gifts helped as well. I often purchased a small toy or book for each child, which I kept in my bag. Sometimes I would dole these out at moments of crisis; sometimes I would use them as bribes for positive attitudes and behavior in the car. In any case, they were sure to provide at least an hour or so of much needed sanity!
Third—read-alouds. Probably the most entertaining and successful tactic we have relied on while on vacation, has been the books we have read/listened to together. Audio books are fabulous for this! The best part is we can check them out at our local library, listen to them on the trip, and then return them without spending a dime (provided I return them on time)! The children have been entertained for hours at a time by a good audio book. Even the drivers have appreciated the diversion. Probably our favorite series to date has been the Hank the Cowdog series by John R. Erickson. These books are read by the narrator, whose range of voices rivals that of the best comedians. The stories are goofy, but the kids like them. And Erickson includes enough puns and allusions to keep the adults chuckling too. In addition to recorded books, I have spent countless hours reading aloud to the family. (Sometimes until I am hoarse.) We have read many children’s classics this way, and I would like to think my children are better for it. There is nothing sweeter than to finish reading only to have your children beg for one more chapter.
So, this summer, if a long road trip is on your itinerary, may I encourage you to put away the movies, the MP3s, the smart phones, and the gaming devices and rediscover the pleasure of books. Reading is a lifelong pleasure, and we can cultivate it in the car!
A. E. Muses
Thoughts on books, writing, movies, homeschooling, and random other topics.
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